Chief Secretary of Huguang, Wuchang Prefecture.

After entering August, the weather is no longer so hot, and the matter in Huguang has also entered the final stage of determination.

Among the princes of the vassals, King Dong'an of the Chu vassal was the first to be arrested.

However, the subsequent investigation by the imperial envoy of the clues about his involvement in the case was the most difficult.

Unlike other lords who were stupid, Zhu Xianzhen did things very cleanly.

Not to mention wearing several layers of gloves inside and outside, the main thing is that he is ruthless enough.

Zhu Yingyan of the Prince of Yueyang, Zhu Yingxu of the Prince of Yong'an, and Zhu Changling, the crown prince of Jingfan, died suddenly and disappeared.

Even Zhu Yingchui, the king of Tongshan in the Chu vassal, died at the turn of summer and autumn, and I don't know how it was related to this matter.

Not only was there no direct evidence to implicate King Dong'an in Zhang Chucheng's case, but he also dismissed all other matters of supporting ore thieves and stealing mineral deposits.

It is obvious that those who do not die in old age are thieves.

But fortunately, Huangtian paid off.

As the investigation of the case progresses, the circumstances of the case gradually unfold.

And what could be called a model of cooperation between the government and the people that followed - perhaps it was due to the execution of one prince and six princes in the Ming Dynasty, and the clan was frightened by the imperial envoy's power, or perhaps the people in Huguang were unwilling to see it.

Many imperial envoys stayed to lend a helping hand.

All in all, a bunch of overt and covert physical evidence and clues were laid out one after another in the public case in the lobby of the Huguang Governor's Yamen.

After working together, King Dong'an was finally convicted.

In addition, due to the inexperience of the case handlers, they did not instruct all parties to "explain their problems properly and don't make random claims." The people involved in the case said whatever they wanted when explaining the matter, which inadvertently involved some additional things.

…

"I thought that the great case of killing the king and usurping the throne of the Chu vassal twenty-eight years ago was shocking enough, but unexpectedly, the drama of the dove occupying the magpie's nest is not inferior at all." Liang Menglong clicked his tongue and said in surprise.

Governor Liang was very busy in settling the place, but he didn't care about the investigation. Now that the imperial envoys had finished investigating the case, he had time to ask about it.

He was flipping through the files at the moment, feeling as if he were reading a storybook, and he was enjoying it.

"The King of Chu did not leave any heirs during his twenty-one-year reign. Within just six months after Jihai passed away in August of the fifth year of Longqing, five posthumous children were born one after another!"

"There was no one in Huguang to show off such a wonderful sight at that time."

At the time, Princess Liu of Jiangchuan of Min Fan also wanted to play the trick of occupying the magpie's nest and falsely claimed that her mother's children were of Zhu family blood. At that time, there was a big fuss, but it was exposed within a few days.

Now the same thing happened to Chu Fan, and it was done quietly.

All I can say is that it is worthy of being the founding sect that has been operating for two hundred years, with a big tree and deep roots.

Councilor Feng Shiyu said something fair to his colleagues in Huguang: "You can't say that. After all, most of the officials here have heard about how Emperor Xianzong dealt with it back then."

At that time, the affair of Princess Liu of Jiangchuan was exposed, and the palace officials started to fight and kill the censor who heard about the incident. As a result, Emperor Xianzong only asked her to reflect on her affairs, and also dismissed the officials who were "meddling in other people's affairs".

Since we have learned from the past, we all think that doing more is worse than doing less. What if the King of Chu really returned to the light before his death, and the quality of his essence also returned to the light?

Liang Menglong took a sip of tea and became more and more excited the more he read: "It is said that Guo Lun, the envoy of the palace, said that although Zhu Huakui, the eldest son of King Chu, was apparently the posthumous son of the palace maid Hu, he was actually the blood of King Dong'an and the princess's natal family.

.”

"The second son Zhu Huabi is the young grandson of Dowager Wu's younger brother."

"No wonder the concubine and the princess spared no effort to support King Dong'an. It turns out that they eat from the same pot!"

He didn't know much about other things, but he had heard a thing or two about Wu Jinghe being called by Chu Fan to negotiate an agreement as soon as he arrived in Huguang.

Now there were only Liang Menglong and Feng Shiyu in the hall. The latter could not pretend not to have heard Shangguan's soliloquy.

Feng Shiyu responded casually: "Oh, these clans are so disrespectful of human ethics by not learning the classics."

"The concubine is the legitimate mother of the late King of Chu, and the princess is the legitimate wife of the late King of Chu. After the death of King Chu, the two of them actually joined forces to taint their own son. Her husband's bloodline is simply unsightly!"

Although the aunt's mother is not her biological mother, as long as the Confucian classics are in her heart, she should have the awareness that the aunt's mother is closer to her biological mother.

These bad things are all caused by not studying the classics and not practicing virtue!

Liang Menglong was indifferent to Feng Shiyu's official tone. Instead, after reading the dossier, he rubbed his chin with unsatisfied thoughts: "Hua Zhi, do you think the third son Zhu Huayin and the fourth son Zhu Huashan are the descendants of the King of Chu?"

He did not mention the fifth son, because the fifth son died last month - he died of a convulsion, and he died together with the king of Tongshan, Zhu Yingchui.

Feng Shiyu hesitated for a moment, then shook his head: "It's hard to say."

Mainly, there is no reliable way to check. The trick of blood test is only useful in story books.

Taking a step back and saying...Isn't King Dong'an also of Chu vassal blood? It's hard not to confuse the son of King Dong'an with the son of King Chu, regardless of their appearance or blood.

Of course, there is another very important point - it is said that the King of Chu is a good man.

In this way, the origins of these sons are really difficult to say.

Liang Menglong put the file aside and said with emotion: "No one thought that Zhang Chucheng and Tang Bin were involved in this matter, so they were harmed by King Dong'an. It's really unpredictable."

How else would you say that officials, gods, and ghosts are disgusted.

Although Zhang Chucheng was ordered to investigate the mining tax case, he had the power and responsibility to report the matter.

That is to say, even if he heard any market rumors, he could report them directly to the emperor.

But this person is also a public official who still has a sense of responsibility.

Huguang is Zhang Chucheng's hometown after all, so I guess he didn't want to harm the Prince of Chu's palace without any basis and bring harm to the countryside.

Zhang Chucheng then set off for the concubine's natal home and the princess's natal home to visit and investigate.

Perhaps to scare the snake, when Zhang Chucheng finally went to Linxiang County, the hometown of the Hu family, the nominal mother of several posthumous children, was poisoned by King Dong'an.

Liang Menglong, who had been patrolling the area for many years, was quite emotional.

If it is for the sake of national affairs and we are counter-attacked, then that's it.

But if you accidentally lose your life for such a shameful thing, it's really not worth it.

Feng Shiyu looked slightly sad when Liang Menglong mentioned Zhang Chucheng.

The two were silent for a while.

Liang Menglong looked outside and said again: "The central government's order is coming this morning. Why haven't those people come to the hall to receive the order?"

The decree from the capital was heard hundreds of miles away last night, and it will surely be reached this morning.

Everyone has finished their work, and it’s just a matter of time to follow the decree and return to Beijing as soon as possible.

Why, after waiting for a long time, even after reading all the files, they were still the only ones waiting here.

Hearing this, Feng Shiyu shook his head and said, "Xu Fantai and Hai Yushi should have rushed back before it was too late."

On the first day of August, there was a huge earthquake in Jingzhou Prefecture. Many people were killed and injured. Farms, houses, dams and other places were all damaged.

Just as the investigation of the imperial envoy case was completed, Hai Rui immediately left for Jingzhou Prefecture to supervise the allocation of funds for disaster relief, take charge of rescuing people, rebuilding residential dams and other matters.

But at that time, neither the geographical aftershocks nor the aftershocks of the situation in Huguang had completely dissipated.

Everyone in Huguang was afraid that something unexpected might happen to this passerby who was about to leave, so the chief envoy Xu Xuemo followed the people's wishes and followed him along with the officials and government guards.

Although Jingzhou Mansion is not far away, there is always time to deliver the news every time you come and go. I'm afraid it will be too late to receive the order.

Liang Menglong nodded: "Of course I know about this. Let alone others, it's just that Prince Consort Wu hasn't come for a while. Do you want to call someone to urge him?"

"And Li Guizhong, what are you doing?"

That Prince Consort Wu was sleeping every day and would not wake up until daybreak.

Liang Menglong was really afraid that this man would go to bed past the hour and miss the order.

Just as Feng Shiyu was about to speak, Li Zaiting's voice came from outside the lobby: "I have gone to look for the prince-in-law. He is ill. Let him nurse himself back to health."

The two people in the hall were startled.

This... A few days ago, when Zhu Xizhong ordered the princes and princes to be punished and impeached, he first became "physically ill" and then died suddenly.

Wu Jinghe should also follow suit?

The two of them were thinking.

Li Zaiting looked at Liang Menglong and said with a smile: "Liang Butang, when I came here I heard a commotion outside the house. It seems that the imperial edict is coming soon."

"I'm afraid I have to go outside the house to greet you."

Angels, the local officials will definitely welcome them.

But Li Zaiting was also an angel, so he didn't need to go to the door to greet him. He only had to wait in the hall to hear the order.

Liang Menglong was familiar with this kind of thing. He stood up and first ordered the left and right to set up the ceremony and the incense table. Then he cupped his hands and strode out of the Yamen gate.

Feng Shiyu was about to follow.

Li Zaiting suddenly stopped him: "Hua Zhi!"

Feng Shiyu paused and looked back at Li Zaiting with a questioning look.

Li Shiran sat down in the court, then stretched out his hand to signal Feng Shiyu to sit down as well, and said casually: "We are coming back from King Dong'an."

Feng Shiyu hesitated for a moment, then sat down and asked curiously: "Ying Feng has something to teach me?"

Only then did he realize that Li Zaiting clearly wanted to talk to him alone, so he dismissed Liang Menglong.

I just don’t know what’s going on at this critical moment.

Li Zaiting seemed to be thirsty. He took a big sip of tea like a cow chewing peonies, then put down the cup and said, "It's not that I have anything to teach you. It's just that the imperial edict is coming and the coffin is sealed right in front of me. I feel a little worried in my heart."

Feng Shiyu was confused: "Worry? Why do you say this?"

Li Zaiting lowered his head, fiddled with the lid of the tea bowl, and said with a frown: "Don't Hua Zhi think that this package of things went too smoothly, and the traces of someone adding fuel to the flames are too obvious?"

Feng Shiyu thought about what Li Zaiting said, then shook his head and said: "Every time comes, heaven and earth are all working together. With His Majesty's blessing, it is only reasonable that things go smoothly."
To be continued...